In response to concerns about poor engagement and achievement in reading, some high schools have implemented independent reading programs to give students time to read self-selected texts during school. Some schools are also adopting the Lexile framework as a tool for matching readers with challenging texts in order to improve reading motivation…

Today's adolescents must meet increasing demands for high levels of literacy. However, low self-efficacy and motivation for reading often prohibit adolescents from developing and sustaining positive reading habits. Consequently, educators must provide opportunities for students to experience reading as a rewarding and useful endeavor. Research…

Many schools have placed increased emphasis on literacy skills. Many state and federal programs require schools to demonstrate increased rates of literacy or improved tests scores based on literacy skills. And for many students, the fastest and most efficient method to achieve improved literacy skills is through Sustained Silent Reading (SSR). It…

Two pressing education reforms entail improving students' reading skills and improving high schools in the United States. In this article, the authors focus on both of these issues by adding the voices of students in an underperforming high school to the discussion about reading reform. We present the results of a larger study pertaining…

A study investigated the effect Sustained Silent Reading (SSR) has had on literacy at Estancia High School in California which recently implemented an SSR program. It also examined the role SSR has on language development, comprehension, vocabulary, student attitudes, and its corollary consequence on the development of reading habits. A survey of…

Noble High School, a large school located in rural southern Maine, embraces the concept of smaller learning communities, and its more than 1,100 students are heterogeneously grouped into teams. Although Noble was recently cited as a model of rural education (NASSP, 2004), its students nevertheless struggle to develop important literacy skills. On…

Sustained Silent Reading (SSR) has been around in various forms for over 40 years. While this subject has received much study in elementary schools, the influence of SSR on typical, non-at-risk high school students' reading habits appears to be lacking. The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of SSR on ninth grade students' recreational…

To understand the capacity of middle and high schools to support reading, a study examined two questions: (1) How do middle/high schools organize and allocate resources to support reading? and (2) How do middle/high schools respond to resource and structural challenges created by the multiple institutional actors that comprise the school system?…

Describes a sustained silent reading program in a 9th-grade reading class of 60 students, most of them at-risk students. Finds that, on average, students improved 3.9 grade levels in their reading. (SR)

A selection of seven articles on teaching reading to high school students is presented in this report. The topics discussed are: (1) a structured approach to reading expository prose, (2) the effectiveness of sustained silent reading, (3) readability variations in secondary remedial high interest books, (4) the effects of previewing difficult…

Suggests that a remedial English classroom should be simple, emphasize respect, and make students comfortable. Notes that regardless of the special challenges each student may bring to the classroom, basic language skills improve through practice. Describes a remedial English class, which incorporates journal writing, reading aloud, sustained…